Emma Watson has opened up about her “deep love” for her Harry Potter co-star Tom Felton, describing them as “soulmates”.
The two actors have known each other since they were both cast in the very first Harry Potter film. Tom played Draco Malfoy in all eight instalments of the franchise, with Emma portraying Hermione Granger.
Many fans have wanted romance for the pair ever since they learned of Emma’s crush on Tom in the early days of their screen career.
While the two stars have talked of their close bond in the past, Emma has provided further insight in the foreword of Tom’s new memoir, Beyond the Wand: The Magic and Mayhem of Growing Up a Wizard.
“Like Tom, I always struggle to explain to people the nature of our connection and relationship,” Emma wrote.
“For more than 20 years now we’ve loved each other in a special way, and I’ve lost count of the times that people have said to me, ‘You must have drunkenly made out, just once!’ ‘You must have kissed!’ ‘There must be something!’”
“But what we have is far deeper than that,” Emma continued.
“It’s one of the purest loves I can think of. We’re soulmates, and we’ve always had each other’s backs. I know we always will.”
Emma goes on to note that it “makes me emotional” to think about the level of friendship she has with Tom.
“Sometimes it feels hard to live in a world where people are so quick to judge, to doubt, to question intentions. Tom doesn’t do that,” Emma continued.
“I know that, even if I’ve made a mistake, he’ll understand that my intention was good. I know that he’ll always believe me. Even when he doesn’t have the whole picture, he’ll never doubt that I’m coming from a good place and will have done my very best. That’s true friendship, and to be seen and loved like that is one of the greatest gifts of my life.”
Despite the close bond these days, Tom reveals in the book that they didn’t initially get along – admitting he still feels “ashamed” of the way he treated the then nine-year-old Emma when she invited her co-stars to watch her perform a dance routine in her dressing room.
“We were predictably dismissive,” he wrote. “We sniggered our way down to Emma’s show, and the sniggers grew louder as she danced.
“We were just being shitty boys, largely out of awkwardness and because we thought taking the piss was cool, but Emma was visibly upset by our thoughtless reaction. I did feel like a bit of a dick, and rightly so.”
He added: “I’m glad that our friendship did not founder on the rocks of my insensitivity, but became something deeper. A touchstone for both of our lives.”